That’s how we look when we’re out at the beach.  It’s because we use mineral sunscreens, loaded with titanium oxide (you’ll see this in makeup) and zinc oxide (the stuff in diaper cream).  With our big floppy hats, SPF clothing, and ghostlike complexions, fashionable we are not.  But neither are we sunburned.  Skin cancer, you’re not welcome here.

I switched to mineral sunscreens after checking my formerly-favorite sunscreen and realizing that some of those components listed in that chemical mumbo-jumbo list of ingredients were potentially carcinogenic themselves.  Good grief.  Further, their coverage wasn’t complete for skin-damaging ultraviolet light, which explained why the year we rode 50-mile bike rides around Needville and Beasley we got the most ridiculous farmer’s tans despite hourly sunscreen applications.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) just put out their annual sunscreen report.   (These are the same people that also help you figure out which produce is highest in pesticides.)  In the sunscreen report, information isn’t always complete—some manufacturers change formulations over the course of the year and some ingredients, such as micronized titanium dioxide, are still being studied.  But I am so grateful for what is provided:  conveniently aggregated, searchable toxicity data for around 500 kinds of sunscreen.  The report also lists nine important points here; note that products with Vitamin A and its derivatives (e.g., retinol) are very common in sunscreen and can actually accelerate the development of skin cancer.  Yippee.  (While you’re checking your sunscreen for retinol or retinyl palmitate, check your moisturizer, too).  

In the U.S. nobody regulates sunscreen, just like nobody regulates makeup.  Shop carefully, friends, and don’t forget your hat (and shirt and pants).

(Speaking of sunshine, McGill University in Canada just reported that 59% of their sample group were low in Vitamin D; 25% were considered deficient.  The most reliable source of Vitamin D?  The sun, straight up, in moderate amounts.)